Green Water Causes Nausea
Posted 22nd February 2001

by (A HREF="mailto:greenleaf@pl.net">Jim Gladwin of Auckland's Water Pressure Group A meeting took place at 4pm Tuesday between representatives of 'The People's Option Water Coalition' (Jim Gladwin and Penny Bright from the Auckland Water Pressure Group, and Mereddyd Barrar from Citizens Against Privatisation) and public servants, Grant Taylor (Chair of The Auckland Region Water Review Steering Group), Theresa Stratton (member of the Auckland Region Water Review Steering Group) and John McCardle (from Manukau City Council). Councillor Maire Leadbeater from Auckland City Council also attended and participated positively.

We told the first three mentioned public servants in no uncertain terms that we expected our fourth option the People's Option to be included in all their publicity, otherwise their call for the public to have their say was an utter farce and a sham. We told them that we wanted our People's Option to have equal coverage in the Herald advertisements going out Wednesday 21 February (there was adequate time to do this) and in local newspapers later in the week - plus in their glossy brochures, etc.. Another request was for them to 'pull' the ad, and defer their launch as a gesture of goodwill, while discussion takes place with the various Council representatives throughout the region over the inclusion of the People's Option. Grant Taylor intimated that discussions would take place within councils to consider our request for inclusion, and he also received our request for funding to promote our alternative to the Review Team's three commercially oriented "options".so that democracy may be served. However, he stated categorically that the ad would be going ahead on Wednesday 21 February. We told him that if that is the case 'it is war'.

We assured him that the coalition groups will do everything we can to undermine their process, because it is a sham. There is no option that the tens of thousands of citizens within the Auckland Region who have already shown their opposition to user-charging, and commercialised and privatised models for water services, can support. A conflict has now begun throughout the region.

The Auckland Region Water Review had their media launch at QE2 square yesterday morning. Three fountains spouted GREEN water. Green is the colour of money, and that is exactly what their three options represent - water, not as a vital necessity for life which should be run in the community's interest as an essential public service - but as a money-making commodity, with user charges hitting ordinary working people, and funding rates reductions that subsidise the wealthy.

THIS REVIEW AFFECTS ALL CITIZENS WITHIN THE AUCKLAND REGION IMMEDIATELY, AND PAVES THE WAY FOR THE REST OF THE COUNTRY!!